BLOG

UC-Prairie View A&M Rock 'N Roll Party

You could
see the lack of fire in the pregame introductions. You could see that if PVAM
started the game with a good mindset - and with good shots - the Panthers could
run up a lead. You could see it from the very beginning.

And
according to senior guard Deonta Vaughn and junior guard Larry Davis, the
Bearcats could feel it as well.

"We just
didn't get prepared for the game," Davis
said. "We just kind of sat around and didn't get ready for the game. We weren't
warm, we weren't ready. We didn't have our mind on the game, kind of taking the
game for granted."

After the
game, Mick Cronin gave credit to UC assistant coach Tony Stubblefield, who
prepared the PVAM scouting report. Everything Stubblefield said the Panthers
would try, Cronin said, they tried. Point guard Christopher Jones was as quick
as Stubblefield said. Whenever Darnell Hugge (a game-high 16 points) touched
the ball, he went to his right - just like Stubblefield said.

The
Bearcats, Cronin said, simply didn't follow the gameplan. That, and they didn't
have the right mindset entering the game. Surprising considering this was, you
know, the season-opener.

"Our lack
of mental focus was very disappointing to the scouting report," Cronin said.
"We practiced Saturday and Sunday as good as we've practiced all year. The
problem is we were overconfident without reason. You don't just roll out the
balls and win because you have more athletes. You have to go out and defend.
The other team practices, too. They have a gameplan as well. All that matters
is who executes better. It doesn't matter the name of the team or what
conference they're from. There's no question that guys thought they would show
up, we'd say 'Boo,' and they'd go home."

Cronin
did, however, take some positives from the game. The Bearcats kept their poise
when they fell behind by 15 points late in the first half. They improved their
second-half defense. They showed some much-needed energy in the final 20
minutes.

"Trust
me, I'm sure they're pretty embarrassed right now, but our guys need earmuffs,"
Cronin said. "You're only going to be as good as you play, not as good as
people say. What people say is totally irrelevant. But this happens to
everybody."

--The
Bearcats gameplan on offense was to pound the ball inside to sophomore forward
Yancy Gates and senior center Steve Toyloy (junior center Anthony McClain
didn't play, but that wasn't a surprise considering how small the Panthers
lineup is). Cronin knew PVAM would collapse into the post and sag four players
back to defend the interior.

So,
Cronin wanted Toyloy and Gates to pass to the perimeter where the Bearcats theoretically
would get open looks.

But
Toyloy had four turnovers (to go with four assists and just three shots), and
Gates only got five attempts. That created problems, and as a result, UC
attempted 30 3-point shots, many of them inadvisable (only four times last year
did the Bearcats take that many long-range shots in a game).

"They
picked their poison and tried to pack it in on us when we went low," Cronin
said. "We took the bait of trying to shoot the 3. You have to shoot when you're
open, but you have to probe the defense at least."

Said PVAM
coach Byron Rimm II: "We switched up the defense a lot. We ran a lot of 2-3
zone, a lot of 2-3 junk. We're one of the top defensive teams in our conference
(the SWAC). We do a lot of helpside defense. We're very small, so we have to be
able to three-quarter the post and have backside help. They're 6-8, 240 pounds.
We're 6-6, 205. We should lose that battle."

--Freshman
guard Lance Stephenson - who has been as hyped as any Bearcats recruit in the
last decade - had a rough debut, making just 2 of 10 shots (0 of 3 from the 3)
to record seven points, four rebounds and two assists.

"He was a
nervous wreck," Cronin said. "He'll get better. I knew one thing he would do
when we were struggling; he was in with the (huddle) trying to fire guys up.
You could see his frustration and his desire to win. But I have to teach him
that there's no such thing as a 10-point shot. You just have to be solid."

Vaughn
said he needs to take it upon himself to help Stephenson navigate through the
early portion of his college career.

"I could
see he thinks it's a lot of pressure on him," Vaughn said. "He's got to take
his time. It's college ball right now, and the first couple of games, the speed
is a lot quicker than high school."

--Other
notes: Cronin said Stephenson tweaked an ankle in the first half, but he came
back from the locker room later in the first half and proclaimed to Mick that
he was fine ... UC improves to 91-17 in home openers.